The fight of lights

by Nickky Faustine De Guzman
November 27, 2013

Proper lighting makes or breaks the ambiance and look of a room, hence its importance. As in fashion rules, the warm yellow light mellows down a face and can hide someone’s imperfections; the white light on the other hand highlights one’s features. This golden canon is also applicable to styling homes. Apt lighting can downplay or upgrade the style of a space such as the living room.

This is where the key roles of layering lights come in the picture especially in the living room since it accommodates and plays different facets such as the entertainment, study area, and/or sometimes dining area, it should be properly lit. A well-designed and thought-of living room must include layered lights, meaning light fixtures that accommodate for the general lighting and for the accent lighting.

There are thousand lighting fixtures to choose from but the bigger problem lies on what are the best kind of lights to buy.

Here is a comprehensive breakdown of light types according to the Design Recycle (www.designrecycleinc.com):

Incandescent lights are cheap but die quickly because they use 90% of their energy to become light. The fluorescent lights on the other hand are more expensive than incandescent and they light 20-30 times more.  Obviously, the LED lights are the best given the factors in the table although they are the most expensive. On the plus side, LED lights are also environmentally friendly and can last for over 20 years.

General and Accent Lightings

As mentioned, a living room must have two kinds of light fixtures: the general and the accent lights. The general light as its term implies is used for the all-purpose illumination. The accent lighting on the other hand only complements your wallpapers, cabinets, coffee tables, and other living room accessories.

The classy and elegant chandeliers and pendants (the smaller ones) fall under the general lighting category. They are excellent sources of lights for the living room. Aside from that, they are good house accessories.

The chandeliers and pendants come in different designs, colors, and materials. Price starts at P50,000 depending on the materials.  Your favorite stores—SM Department Store, Robinson’s Department Store, Home Depot, Quiapo, Dapitan Arcade, Divisoria, Marks & Spencer, and online shops—offer them.

Lamps, candles, lanterns and scones (light fixtures affixed to the wall), meanwhile are the accent lights. Aside from giving accents, they can be used as aides for reading, surfing the net, or playing games.  The accent lights costs for as low as P5,000. Again, SM Department Store, Robinson’s Department Store, Home Depot, Quiapo, Dapitan Arcade, Divisoria, Marks & Spencer, and online shops offer them.

Here’s a quick tip, the color of a living room plays an important role on illumination. A pastel/light colored room reflects lights thus making it bigger, homier, and happier while a dark room absorbs light hence making it gloomier